Bafétimbi Gomis

Saint-Étienne

Born in La Seyne-sur-Mer, Var, Gomis made 13 appearances for Saint-Étienne in his first season with the club, scoring two league goals. In the next season, he made six goalless appearances for the club before going on loan to Troyes in a successful six-month loan deal, where he scored six goals in 13 matches. The 2005–06 season was not as successful as the previous season, as he made 24 league appearances for Saint-Étienne, scoring only two league goals. The 2006–07 season was when Gomis established himself with Saint-Étienne, scoring ten goals in 30 appearances. Gomis continued this form into the 2007–08 season where he scored an impressive 16 goals in 34 appearances. In the 2008 summer transfer window, Newcastle United under manager Kevin Keegan reportedly offered a transfer fee of £10 million for Gomis' services. However, a move did not materialise and Gomis remained at Saint-Étienne. In an interview with French newspaper L'Équipe, Gomis stated he was attracted by a possible move to England, but revealed Serie A would be his preference. In the weeks leading up to the 2009 January transfer window, his name was again touted in speculation surrounding various Premier League sides, though he moved to allay the rumours, stating his desire to see out the Ligue 1 season with his current club. Gomis' form in the 2008–09 season was scrutinized more heavily than it was in the previous season. Despite this, Gomis successfully netted five times in 17 league…

Born in France, Gomis was also eligible to play for Senegal through his ancestry. On 8 May 2008, he said regarding his international future: "I don't have to choose between the French or Senegalese teams, as I have not been called yet. The French team? It would be pretentious to ask for it, but I am not adverse to the French team." On 18 May 2008, Gomis was called up for the provisional French UEFA Euro 2008 squad, ahead of experienced striker David Trezeguet, due to his particularly good form towards the end of Saint-Étienne's season. Gomis scored two goals in 26 minutes in a warm-up match against Ecuador on 27 May. He was the first player to score twice on his debut for the national team since Zinedine Zidane. On 28 May, he was selected in the French squad ahead of Marseille striker Djibril Cissé. On 9 June, Gomis won his third cap by coming on as a substitute for Nicolas Anelka in the scoreless draw against Romania. On 7 October 2009, he collapsed in the training for the match against the Faroe Islands. In 2011, after a good start of the season with Lyon, Laurent Blanc called up Gomis for UEFA Euro 2012 qualification matches against Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Club

International

Scores and results list France's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gomis goal

Gomis has a medical condition, suspected to be reflex syncope, which means he is liable to faint during times of stress. This has caused him to faint during a number of matches. He is the cousin of fellow footballers Nampalys Mendy and Alexandre Mendy.